Almighty brawl ends West Midlands Christian League football match

An unholy row broke out between two sides in the West Midlands Christian League, which expects players ‘to honour the name of Jesus Christ’ on and off the pitch, over a penalty decision that led to a punch-up and five red cards.

Zion Athletic and Common Ground United got into a fight (Picture: Alamy)

Trouble flared between Zion Athletic and Common Ground United when the referee pointed to the spot in 60th minute for a foul on a Zion player.

A player for Zion, who were winning 5-1, is said to have smiled and ‘made a remark’ about the decision before he was hit by an opponent.

This led to a brawl of biblical proportions. A Common Ground player, who had been sent off earlier in the match, ran on from the changing rooms to take part. Five of his teammates received violent conduct charges and one Zion player was booked for improper conduct.

The match between the two Birmingham sides was abandoned.

Common Ground founder Tony Sadla, said: ‘Some of the kids come to church and some of them don’t, and those are no longer church-going Christians.’

Birmingham County FA discipline manager Mike Fellows said: ‘I cannot recall a game ever being abandoned in the Christian League, certainly not due to violence. It’s so strict even swearing is banned.’